Former Rowan County Couple Sentenced on Fraud Charges in Connection with Disappearance of Child

Former Rowan County Couple Sentenced on Fraud Charges in Connection with Disappearance of Child

GREENSBORO, NC—A former Rowan County couple was sentenced on fraud charges today, according to Ripley Rand, United States Attorney for the Middle District of North Carolina.

Sandy Wade Parsons, 41, and Casey Stone Parsons, 40, were sentenced by United States District Judge Thomas D. Schroeder in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Sandy Parsons was sentenced to 96 months in prison; three years’ supervised release; $14,062.00 in restitution; and a special assessment of $4,300.00. Casey Parsons was sentenced to 120 months in prison; three years’ supervised release; $41,814.00 in restitution; and a special assessment of $1,500.00.

Sandy Parsons was found guilty of forty-three federal fraud charges after a trial in October 2014. The charges included one count of conspiracy to defraud the government, one count of aggravated identity theft, one count of false statement to a government agency, twenty counts of theft of government funds, and twenty counts of mail fraud.

Casey Parsons pleaded guilty on October 1, 2014, to one count of conspiracy to defraud the government, five counts of mail fraud, five counts of aiding in the preparation of a false tax return, four counts of wire fraud, and one count of aggravated identity theft.

“The investigation and prosecution of this case has been a shining example of effective inter-agency cooperation,” said United States Attorney Rand. “We would like to thank our partners in the FBI, IRS, Social Security, North Carolina SBI, and Rowan County Sheriff’s Department for their work in making sure that Casey and Sandy Parsons were held accountable for the fraud they committed in connection with the disappearance of Erica Parsons.”

The Casey Parsons and Sandy Parsons cases were investigated by the Rowan County Sheriff’s Office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation, the Social Security Administration, and the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation. The Casey Parsons and Sandy Parsons cases were prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Anand Ramaswamy.